Some happy personal news: I’m cleared to walk without a brace, so less listening on the stationary bike, more listening while walking.
7 Pod Takes
1) “I feel like there’s an America out there that isn’t as crazy as we are.”
Listen: The Argument: Is The Supreme Court Broken? Should Democrats Run on #MeToo? (9:01)
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That’s Ross Douthat, one of the crazy “we” in question, along with his co-hosts on a new podcast from The New York Times opinion page, Michelle Goldberg and David Leonhardt.
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Says Douthat: “I’m not completely sure how much of this toxic mood is pervasive in the country, versus being sort of pervasive and constantly whipped up by those of us cursed to write about it for a living and argue about it on social media.”
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Fact check: True.
2) “We’re not afraid enough of water.”
Listen: Weather Geeks: Hurricane Hype & Hurdles (11:38)
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That’s Dr. Rick Knabb, former director of the National Hurricane Center, emphasizing the power of surges and flooding when it comes to hurricanes.
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Knabb and host Dr. Marshall Shepherd discuss whether the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is the most effective way to communicate the power of storms.
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Knabb says it’s a legitimate question whether the popular focus on wind speed is helping or hurting our responses.
3) “We’ve all been trained to posture. We have to learn something different if what we want is to understand each other.”
Listen: On Being: Living the Questions: Can conversation make any difference at a moment like this? (10:55)
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That’s Krista Tippett, who devotes a 22-minute pod to articulating the awfulness of the Kavanaugh hearings and why we need to strive for better conversation.
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Tippett took to her pod to explain and elaborate her polarizing late-September tweet.
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My take: Another reason podcasts are better than Twitter. The complexity and nuance of Tippett’s explanation on her pod is better and more enriching than any tweet.
4) “You need to start from a mindset that shutting down curiosity leads to problems.”
Listen: HBR IdeaCast: The Power of Curiosity (4:51)
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That’s Harvard Business School professor Francesca Gino, whose research shows how creativity in the workplace can reduce conflicts and lead to better outcomes.
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She adds: Creativity doesn’t lead to inefficiency or unproductivity.
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My take: Excellent. We need more curiosity in the world.
5) “Think of an apology as an investment.”
Listen: Freakonomics Radio: How to Optimize Your Apology (8:29)
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That’s Ben Ho, associate professor of economics at Vassar College, who has developed a model of apologies.
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One prediction: Apologies are more likely in longer relationships.
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The most important prediction in his model: “For an apology to be effective it has to be costly.”
6) “The league’s more fun if the Knicks are good.”
Listen: The Bill Simmons Podcast: Guessing 1018-19 NBA Over/Unders With Joe House (16:16)
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That’s Simmons, wishing the best to New York’s awful NBA squad.
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Simmons discusses the rumor Kevin Durant wants to join the Knicks next year.
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My take: That would be fun. Welcome back, NBA.
7) “Just Google the Queen of England and paint that face onto your face, and you’ll be good.”
Listen: Dear Hank & John: President Alligator (13:18)
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That’s John Green’s rec for dealing with awkwardness of people staring at you when they’re singing “Happy Birthday” to you.
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He adds: “She always has people looking at her so she is incredibly good at making a face that says, ‘I acknowledge you, thank you acknowledging me, and let the festivities continue.’”
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My take: Worth a shot.
Go Deep
1) The Murder of Laquan McDonald
- The WBEZ Chicago/Chicago Tribune production that, over the course of 25 episodes, followed the trial of Jason Van Dyke, the Chicago police officer who shot and killed McDonald, finished this week.
- Binge time: 8 hours, 18 minutes.
- Chaser: The Daily debriefs its Chicago bureau chief on the case for 22 minutes.
2) The Impeachment of Bill Clinton
Listen: Slow Burn
- The celebrated, eight-part deep dive into President Clinton’s impeachment and the surrounding events concluded this week.
- Binge time: 5 hours, 59 minutes.
3) Long-Distance Cons
Listen: The New Yorker Radio Hour
- The two-part pod about a businessman who “lost his fortune in what seems to have been a scam; years later, his daughter goes to confront the man behind the scheme.”
- Binge time: 1 hour, 4 minutes.
4) “Kokomo”
Listen: Punch Up the Jam
- A 1 hour, 35 minute deep dive into the Beach Boys’ polarizing last big hit.
- Says co-host Miel Bredouw: “This would be the whitest man in the world’s favorite song to strip dance to.”
5) Cops and Computers
Listen: Reply All
- The two-part pod focuses on New York City police officers who “are in a fight against their own police department.” A broken computer system stands at the center of it all.
- Binge time: 1 hour, 25 minutes.
Guest Appearances By…
Agg, Jen Women in Charge
- Restaurateur talks about her restaurant empire.
Aina, Jackie Creative Conversation
Albom, Mitch Kickass News, Nobody Told Me!
Barinholtz, Ike Comedy Bang! Bang!, The Lowe Post, The Big Picture, The Adam Carolla Show
- Actor/comedian makes the pod rounds to talk about his new movie, “The Oath.”
Barr, Roseanne The Joe Rogan Experience
Baty, Chris Write-minded Podcast
- Convo with the founder of NaNoWriMo.
Bell, Kristen Modern Love
- She reads an essay by Lori Jakiela, “The Plain, Unmarked Box Arrived.”
Big Freedia Keep It
Boot, Max Stay Tuned with Preet
Brown, Yvette Nicole Anna Faris is Unqualified
Chalamet, Timothée Playback
Chazelle, Damien Fresh Air
Che, Michael Origins SNL
Dikkers, Scott Kickass News
- Convo with founder of The Onion.
Erickson, Erick On Being
Gad, Josh Curious with Josh Peck
Gethard, Chris The Hilarious World of Depression
Gibbard, Ben Talkhouse
Griffiths, Megan Talkhouse
Gyllenhaal, Maggie Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin
Henson, Taraji P. Skimm’d From the Couch
Herzog, Werner Maltin on Movies
Honnold, Alex Ted Talks Daily, Pardon My Take
- Climber talks free solo climb of Yosemite’s El Capitan.
Jenkins, Tamara The FilmStruck Podcast
Jost, Colin Origins SNL
Kerry, John Off Message
Khosrowshahi, Dara Inside the Hive with Nick Bilton
- Uber’s CEO talks autonomous vehicles, Uber’s culture.
Kohn, Sally On Being
Kroll, Nick The Joe Rogan Experience
Krugman, Paul Conversations with Tyler
Lenker, Adrianne All Songs Considered
- Convo with the songwriter and lead singer of Big Thief.
Longoria, Eva Tilted
McCarthy, Andrew Deviate with Rolf Potts
Meyers, Seth Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Mitchell, Billy Dueling Decades
- Gaming legend on Donkey Kong, shenanigans in Iowa.
Monáe, Janelle This Song
Nowitzki, Dirk The J.J. Redick Podcast
Orange, Tommy Forked Up
Orman, Suze Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations
- The two-parter with the finance expert goes 2+ hours.
Ovitz, Michael The Adam Carolla Show
Reilly, John C. The Bill Simmons Podcast
Sarandon, Susan Oprah’s Master Class
Shteyngart, Gary Bookworm
Schur, Mike The Gist
Sedaris, David Monocle: The Big Interview, The Adam Buxton Podcast
Soloway, Jill Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air
Spacek, Sissy Off Camera with Sam Jones
Thompson, Keenan Origins SNL
Trevorrow, Colin Talkhouse
Union, Gabrielle Pretty Big Deal
Vargas, Jose Antonio The Ezra Klein Show
Vile, Kurt WTF with Marc Maron
Villaseñor, Melissa Origins SNL
Wambach, Abby How It Is
Winkler, Henry Inside of You
Yellowtail, Bethany The Mash-Up Americans
Notable New Podcasts
- Hallie Casey launches a pod that “tries to understand the impacts of food production.”
2) Legal Wars
- Wondery’s new pod recounts “the most famous court cases in American history,” with host Hill Harper.
3) The Argument
- The New York Times Opinion page goes pod, explaining “arguments from across the political spectrum” once a week.
- Noor Tagouri hosts “an eight-episode journey into the world of selling sex in the United States.”
- The pod focuses on the “gender bias that lurks in unexpected places, the impact it has on our everyday lives, and what happens when women lean in and start driving change.” It kicks off with a visit to Reese Witherspoon’s production company.
6) Underdog
- Texas Monthly and Pineapple Street Media team to cover “the most expensive, most talked-about political race of 2018: the U.S. Senate contest between Congressman Beto O’Rourke and Senator Ted Cruz.”